Checked your blood pressure lately?

l have a blood pressure machine at home.  I am sure many do, as I have hypertension, and I take blood pressure medication and I check my blood pressure on a regular basis. I have been reading about how is the best way, and the best time to take your blood pressure. So, I went to my instructional booklet and here are some ideas to help you. Always check with your own medical team before you act on any information you see on the net.

Self-measurement means control, not diagnosis or treatment. Your values must always be discussed with your doctor or a physician who is familiar with your family history.

If you are undergoing medical treatment and receiving medication, consult your doctor to determine the most appropriate time to measure your blood pressure. Never alter the dosages of any medication without direction from your doctor.

Your blood pressure depends on several factors, such as age, gender, weight, and physical condition. It also depends on the environment and your state of mind at the time of measurement. In general, your blood pressure is lower when you are asleep and higher when you are active. Your blood pressure may be higher when recorded at a hospital or a clinic and may be lower when measured in the relaxing comfort of your home. Due to these variations, we recommend that you record your blood pressure regularly at home as well as at your doctor’s clinic.

Try to record your blood pressure regularly at the same time of the day and under the same conditions. This will help your physician detect any extreme variations in your blood pressure and thus treat you accordingly.

Recently, several studies have identified elevated cardiovascular risks (heart failure, stroke, angina) associated with “morning hypertension” Morning Hypertension ( > 135 / 85 mm Hg). There is a typical rise in blood pressure during the physiological changes from sleep to arising for the day.

The ideal times to measure your blood pressure is in the morning and at least 2 hours after dinner. Measure just after you wake up, before breakfast and any physical activity, and in the absence of the urge to urinate. If this is not possible, try to take the measurements later in the morning, before you start any physical activity. Relax for 5 minutes before you record your blood pressure.

Your blood pressure increases or decreases under the following circumstances:

Blood pressure is higher than normal:

·       When you are excited, nervous, or tense

·       While taking a bath/shower

·       During and after exercise or strenuous physical activity

·       When it is cold

·       Within two hours after meals

·       After drinking tea, coffee, or other caffeinated drinks

·       After smoking tobacco

·       When your bladder is full

Blood pressure is lower than normal:

·       After consuming alcohol

·       After taking a bath/shower

February is heart month

February is heart month – a time to increase awareness of cardiovascular health and the things that affect it. Heart disease affects approximately 2.4 million Canadian adults and is the second leading cause of death in Canada. There are several factors that contribute to your overall heart health including exercise, diet, and overall lifestyle. McMaster University has put together some of the latest evidence-based resources on five key areas that help you maintain a healthy heart as you age.

1.   Exercise

Here are four research-based examples of the health benefits of walking:

·        Improves heart health. In older adults who were previously inactive, walking for 20-60 minutes per day, 2-7 days per week can reduce some risk factors for heart disease

·        Benefits people with existing chronic conditions. Walking groups can also provide great opportunities to socialize and increase motivation to be more physically active. For older people with chronic conditions like arthritis, dementia, depression, and Parkinson’s disease, walking in groups can improve blood pressure, heart rate, body fat, fitness.

·        Helps with stroke recovery. One to 6 months after a stroke, walking training (including musical feedback and treadmill training) can help to improve walking speed and distance more than traditional walking training. Six or more months after a stroke, any type of walking training helps improve walking ability, speed, and distance.

·        Reduces pain and improves physical function. For people with chronic musculoskeletal pain, walking can improve pain for up to one year. In fact, walking provides more effective pain relief than other common interventions such as education, usual care, other exercise, relaxation, or massage. Walking can also improve overall physical function in chronic pain sufferers.

2.   Eat a healthy, balanced diet

·        Two recent systematic reviews found that the Paleo diet can lead to weight loss, trim the waistline, and lower body mass index. One of these reviews also found that the Paleo diet may impact other risk factors for heart disease by increasing the concentration of certain fats found in the blood like HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and lowering blood pressure, inflammation, and the concertation of other fats like triglycerides, total cholesterol, and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. It’s also important to note that the reviews themselves were small in terms of the number participants included. In the end.

·        Neither paid much attention to the cons of the Paleo diet, but if you’re thinking of adopting this diet, you should consider them carefully! For example, the Paleo diet cuts out dairy, which may impact your calcium levels, a key element for bone health. If following the Paleo diet, it’s important to ensure you’re getting the needed amount of daily calcium from other food sources. The Paleo diet also recommends getting just one-third of your daily calories from carbohydrates, making it a “low-carb” diet. The safety of diets that restrict carbohydrate consumption to this degree is heavily debated and needs to be assessed further.

3.   Reduce your salt intake

·        Cutting back on salt has been the focus of numerous research studies, including 34 randomized controlled trials involving more than 3,200 people between the ages of 22 and 73. Two thirds had high blood pressure; the rest had normal blood pressure. The average reduction in salt intake was 4,400 mg per day over a minimum of four weeks.

·        Most American adults require no more than 6,000 mg of salt per day, while certain groups like African Americans, adults 51 and over, and people with conditions like hypertension, diabetes and chronic kidney disease should reduce their daily salt intake to 4,000mg.

·        The evidence was strong that reducing salt intake lowers blood pressure in adults, regardless of sex or ethnicity and without any adverse effects. Improvements were greatest in people with high blood pressure (systolic blood pressure decreased an average of 5.39 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure decreased an average of 2.82 mm Hg) but notable drops were also seen in people with normal blood pressure.

·        The research also suggests that greater reductions in salt intake will likely decrease blood pressure even further. So, if reducing our salt intake is a prudent course of action and one that will significantly lower our risk of heart disease and stroke, what’s the best way to do it? The real culprit, accounting for up to 85% of our salt consumption, is processed foods. A few sausage links or slices of bacon can account for more than half your daily salt limit. Canned foods, cheeses, breads, cereals, sauces and pickles are among the many other foods that are high in sodium.

4.   Maintain good oral health. You can keep your teeth for your lifetime. Here are some things you can do to maintain a healthy mouth and strong teeth.

·        Drink fluoridated water and brush with fluoride toothpaste.

·        Practice good oral hygiene. Brush teeth thoroughly and floss between the teeth to remove dental plaque.

·        Visit your dentist on a regular basis, even if you have no natural teeth or have dentures.

·        Do not use any tobacco products. If you smoke, quit.

·        Limit alcoholic drinks.

·        If you have diabetes, work to maintain control of the disease. This will decrease risk for other complications, including gum disease.

·        If your medication causes dry mouth, ask your doctor for a different medication that may not cause this condition. If dry mouth cannot be avoided, drink plenty of water, chew sugarless gum, and avoid tobacco products and alcohol.

·        See your doctor or a dentist if you have sudden changes in taste and smell.

·        When acting as a caregiver, help older individuals brush and floss their teeth if they are not able to perform these activities independently.

5     Don’t rely on supplements. Some say, “Without your health you have nothing”. This might explain why three-quarters of us take dietary supplements with the hope of boosting our health.

Clearly, we are a captive market. The challenge comes in teasing out which health claims are true. In some cases, such as in those with certain health conditions or a poor diet, supplements may be a beneficial strategy. Dietary supplements, however, are not closely regulated, and many have failed to live up to their promises of preventing or reversing chronic diseases. Aside from the costs, taking supplements can lead us to adopt a supplement regimen that is potentially dangerous or interferes with our prescribed medications

Ultimately, regardless of whether different dietary supplements are backed by evidence or not, always be sure to consult your health care provider or pharmacist before using them to tackle your health woes. These discussions will help you understand the potential positive and negative impacts on your health as an individual, especially since vitamins aren’t safe for everyone.

Consider a different type of Valentine gift this year

Please support your local Foodbank, they still need your help. Valentine's day is a time of giving to your loved one while helping your neighbours is a very good way of showing love.

The following is from their report 2019

Despite a bleak situation, there is some good news

Foodbank use has stabilized, with the number of visits in 2019 approximately the same as they were in 2018. This year, total food bank visits reported across the food bank network in Canada in March 2019 was 1,084,386. While still a shockingly high number of food bank visits for one month, it is 1 percent lower than it was last year.

This corresponds to strong economic indicators such as low unemployment rates. When unemployment rates are low, the working-age population is generally able to access more employment income, which makes needing a food bank less likely.

Foodbank visits for March 2019 are now approximately the same level as they were in 2010. In the aftermath of the recession, unemployment rates were at their peak throughout 2009 and early 2010.

For many individuals, accessing food banks were the last resort after severance, E.I. and savings had run out. Foodbank visits saw the full effect of this in March of 2011 when there were over 1.2 million visits that month, a 14 percent jump over the prior year. Visits remained high and then saw a gradual decrease from 2015 onward, with numbers stabilizing over the last year. This decline has corresponded to a decline in unemployment rates over the same period,

The percentage of children accessing food banks has been slowly declining, and now represents 34.1 percent of all food bank clients, whereas in 2010 they were 37.2%. An improving economy, combined with federal and provincial tax benefits for families with children, has been helping to slowly increase incomes of these households and maybe having an impact on these results.

During this period, Food Banks Canada, along with others, had advocated for an improved child benefit system at the federal level. The creation of the Canada Child Benefit in 2016 was the outcome of this work and helped to further the progress in refining and improving our system of child benefits in Canada.

Those who are less likely to be able to work due to disability or retirement age – those who receive provincial disability support or pension as their main source of income has increased from 21 percent in 2010 to over 26 percent in 2019. Both groups are struggling with rapidly rising costs of living, along with the increased costs that accompany greater health care needs.

Seniors 65 and over have been the fastest rising age group accessing food banks. Those receiving disability support as their main source of income are contending with incomes that haven’t grown with inflation and often don’t cover basic household expenses.

The increasing cost of housing nationwide and the lack of rent geared to income units have been other factors that have been driving the demand for food banks. Those living in market rent housing have increased as a proportion of visits versus those in social (rent- geared to income) housing. 70 percent of clients live in market rental housing, up from 60 percent in 2010. Those living in social housing have decreased from 25.6% to 14.4%.

The effects of skyrocketing rental markets have been spilling over from outside urban areas and into smaller towns and recent investments in affordable housing units have not yet been able to address the massive demand.

Do you want a discount?

The following is from a number of websites that offer seniors an opportunity to find out what discounts they have. I am listing some available in Canada and a link to a couple of pages where you can find more information. If you are not in Canada, I suggest a Google search Senior discounts (your country or state)

If you are a senior here are some general points about discounts, which I have pointed out before. From bus fare to movie tickets, senior citizens are discount-eligible almost everywhere in Canada. Here are a few sites where you can get more information https://dealhack.ca/blog/canadian-senior-discounts, https://carleton.ca/cura/wp-content/uploads/Canadian-Senior-Discounts.pdf, https://www.theseniorlist.com/senior-discounts/

To get the discount:

Always ask!

Senior discounts are not always openly advertised. It is recommended that you ask about whether or not the store offers a discount every time you make a purchase.

See if you qualify?

Most senior discounts are open for everyone, but please note that some discounts require memberships in some association or other

Carry ID!

Always carry ID so you can prove our age when asked. Every discount in has a required minimum age so if you have id you can prove you qualify for the discount.

Here are some places that offer retail discounts

Home Hardware: 20% discount on select days. Contact your nearest outlet for more information.

Rexall Pharma Plus: 20% discount to CARP members. Exclusions apply.

Value Village: 30% discount every Tuesday at participating Value Village thrift stores. Seniors citizens with valid ID are eligible. Contact your nearest outlet for availability.

RONA: 15% discount if you are 50 years or older when you present a valid ID. For online purchases, use promo code 5015. Available on the first Tuesday of every month.

Lawtons Drugs: 20% discount once a month depending on store location to seniors who are 55 years old and above.

Exclusions apply.

Reno Depot: 15% discount to seniors who are 55 or older every first Tuesday of the month. Valid ID is required.

Giant Tiger: Customers who are 60 or older are eligible for senior discounts. Availability and discount depending on the store.

Goodwill Alberta: 15% discount every Wednesday to seniors who are 60 years old and above.

Goodwill Amity: Seniors who are 65 or older can get a 10% discount every day of the week. Bring valid ID

65 and older

British Columbia Transportation System: The whole public transportation system in British Columbia offers discounted fare rates and a bus pass program to seniors 65+. A valid BC Services Card must be shown to the driver when you pay

Calgary Transit: Seniors age 65+ are eligible to apply for Calgary Transit’s Regular Senior Yearly Pass and Low-Income Seniors Yearly Pass

Go Transit: For passengers age 65 and above, a single-ride fare is half the adult single-ride fare

Toronto Transit Commission: TTC offers discounted fares and passes for seniors 65+.

Ottawa Transit: Ottawa Transit offers free rides for seniors every Wednesday. Discounted monthly pass and lower cash and PRESTO e-purse fares also available

St. John’s Metrobus: St. John’s Metrobus offers discounted rates on their 10-ride pass and monthly/30-day pass to seniors age 65 and over.

Winnipeg Transit: Winnipeg Transit offers discounted fare rates for seniors age 65 or older. A valid identification card must be shown to the operator when boarding.